Posted on 09/17/21
| News Source: i24
The discovery led the World Bank to promise reform initiatives on its Doing Business section
IMF head Kristalina Georgieva, while former chief executive of the World Bank, reportedly pressured staff to improve China's score in a Doing Business 2018 report, an ethics probe disclosed on Thursday.
The World Bank's official website explains that the Doing Business report "provides objective measures of business regulations for local firms in 190 economies."
The investigation was conducted by litigation firm WilmerHale after a request from the World Bank's ethics committee.
According to the law firm's report, Georgieva pressured employees to "make specific changes to China's data points" during a period where the bank required China's approval for a capital increase.
Analysts note that China's ranking in 2018 rose seven spots following Georgieva's alleged changes.
Following the revelation, the World Bank announced that they would no longer be releasing their planned Doing Business analysis, citing "ethical matters, including the conduct of former Board officials, as well as current and/or former Bank staff."
Georgieva stated she disagreed "fundamentally with the findings and interpretations," and delivered a briefing to the IMF's executive board, according to Reuters.